Breaking Down the 12 Republican ‘No’ Votes on the Ryan Budget (Updated)

Updated, 3:51 p.m. | This year saw more Republicans than ever vote against Budget Chairman Paul D. Ryan’s spending blueprint, which passed the House Thursday 219-205. Here is a breakdown of the 12 Republicans who voted against the Wisconsin Republican’s budget and why.

The Georgia Senate Hopefuls

Reps. Paul Broun, Phil Gingrey and Jack Kingston are three of the candidates in a crowded Georgia Republican Senate primary, and their voting patterns have aligned over the past several weeks as they’ve sought to minimize attacks from other camps.

Broun and Gingrey have voted against Ryan’s budgets in the past, but Kingston has been a reliable vote for leadership. That pattern broke Thursday, when Kingston joined his colleagues in voting against Ryan’s resolution. (More on GOP hopefuls running from Boehner here.)

The Committee Exiles

Rep. Walter B. Jones of North Carolina was among the members leadership purged from plum committees in 2012, in part because they voted against leaders’ priorities too often. The defrocking did little to change their voting patterns. Jones and Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan voted against Ryan budgets previously and were among the first to say they would again do so this year. But Amash voted for it Thursday.

A spokesman for Amash said he did not vote for previous Ryan budgets because he believes they violated the law by calling for spending levels different from the parameters set by the Budget Control Act. This year, however, the budget is in line with an agreement Ryan hashed out with Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., so he supported it.

Meanwhile, Rep. Tim Huelskamp of Kansas flirted with voting against the budget this year, but ultimately tallied a “yes” vote. Rep. David Schweikert of Arizona, the other member to be pulled from his committee assignments, has since come back into the fold; he voted for the budget Thursday.

The Conservative ‘Hell No’ Caucus

Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Rick Crawford of Arkansas voted against Ryan’s budget last year and repeated their “no” votes this year. Massie is in the same libertarian-leaning ideological camp as Amash and he has said he would support a budget with deeper spending cuts. Crawford has said he is seeking permanent spending controls, rather than a nonbinding resolution.

Reps. Austin Scott of Georgia also voted no, noting he voted instead for “the most conservative budget put forward, the RSC budget.” He added, though, “I have great respect for Chairman Ryan and the work he has put into crafting solutions for our country.”

The Vulnerable Incumbents

Rep. Chris Gibson of New York faces less-than assured re-election prospects in the general election, and he has voted against the Ryan budget previously. Gibson, a veteran, told local press in the past that the measure spends too much on the military. The Rothenberg Political Report/Roll Call rates this race a Tilts Republican contest.

Rep. David Jolly of Florida, who won a special election earlier this year, is one of only two members never to have voted for a GOP budget. In his rookie Ryan budget vote, Jolly stuck with the defectors.

“While I remain concerned about the $17 trillion in national debt, my immediate focus is ensuring the residents in my district have the critical assistance they need to survive,” he said. “It has been incredibly disappointing and frustrating to watch the economy not fully recover, reinforcing a lack of confidence in our businesses that stifles investment and job creation. With double-digit unemployment in my district, further reductions in food stamps, the children’s health insurance program, student loans and other essential domestic programs vital to the families I represent is not something I can support at this time.”

Ed. note: This story was updated to reflect Amash voted for the Ryan budget.

Article 1, Sections 7 and 8 of the United States Constitution, clearly define the power of the purse as belonging to Congress. The House, specifically. The President may make suggestions, per Article II, Section 3.

toddyo1935

Most of the Federal budget is directed to areas outside the Feds constitutional authorization. When states rights are restored and responsibility for health, education and welfare is ripped from the corrupt and irresponsible Feds, the better off we’ll all be.
Feds have a role, but it ain’t running things – only to come forward in emergencies, and only for a limited time.http://www.articlevprojecttorestoreliberty.com

Igor Shafarevich

Article 1 of our sacred Constitution clearly defines the power of the purse as belonging to Congress.

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